Cascade Aroma - Botanical, Woody and Pine-Sol

[Steven Barrett]

I have some quite stale Cascade hops that have an aroma I find quite unpleasant. It coincidentally tastes overwhelming like an IPA I purchased recently which I ended up pouring down the drain. Both smelled botanical, woody, and pine-sol like. Not pleasant walk through the woods, more like mineral oil after sanding wood - bitter in the way a botanical disgestif liquor smells. I know aroma descriptors can be hard - some descriptions of Cascade are "flower" and "spicy" which sound like pleasant words to me, but that's not what I'm getting. Is this just what Cascade smells like?

For context, I quite enjoy an old school west coast IPA with resinous and dank, aroma and flavor. Since those are traditionally the C hops (of which Cascade is a member), I'm a bit dumbfounded that I could apparently really dislike Cascade.

Anyone have any insight?

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Terroir can be a factor with hop flavors / aromas. Where were the hops grown?

Sorry, missed the phrase "quite stale ... hops"

 

[day_trippr]

Not sure what the question actually is given the hops were known to be "quite stale".
but, fwiw, I grew Cascade for 7 years (along with Centennial, Chinook, and some Fuggles) and I have always used Cascade for many of my recipes, and none of the characters described fit. I suggest buying a 1 oz packet of "known not stale" Cascade...

Cheers!

 

[Steven Barrett]

Yeah I understand a stale hop is probably not a good reflection of the aroma but it smells exactly like an IPA I drank recently, so I thought there may be a connection.

When I’ve brewed batches in the past, I have made it a point to smell each hop and I have a difficult time telling the difference. Mostly I get an overwhelming hop smell which to me is a bit like oily/buttery/green plant matter. I can’t specifically smell citrus, pine, or blueberry from Citra, Chinook and Mosaic, for example.

 

[day_trippr]

Where are you getting all these hops from that you can't actually detect their particular primary characters?
If you don't get heavy citrus and pine from Chinook, for example, you must either be getting sad hops - or maybe there's a genetic thing going on. It's not like we all share perfectly identical sensory abilities - lots of people never taste the plastic from pvc beer lines while others get it right up front, for example...

Cheers!

 

[AzOr]

If it’s available, pick up a bomber of Sierra Nevada pale. That’s classic cascade. You’ll get a good sense of aroma and taste.

 

[Steven Barrett]

Primarily Yakima Chief Hops.

I don’t think I can get Sierra Nevada fresh in Chicago, so I’m not sure the aroma would still be there.

I am pretty confident I don’t have an olfactory deficiency.

 

[day_trippr]

I buy from YCH all the time and have never gotten anything less than very pleasing quality out of any strain purchased.

And "deficiency" is perjorative. "different" isn't...

Cheers!